Big eighth inning helps Tech avoid sweep with 7-1 win over Baylor

Red Raiders finally caught a break and put together a consistent offense

WACO — For 25 innings this weekend, the Texas Tech baseball team struggled mightily just to catch a break, much less put any kind of consistent offense together.

Then, in one inning on Sunday, the Red Raiders got both.

Trailing 1-0, Tech took advantage of a dropped two-out fly ball to score the tying and go-ahead runs, then nine-hole hitter Hunter Redman ripped a three-run double to left for the decisive blow, leading the 23rd-ranked Red Raiders to a 7-1 win over Baylor in the Big 12 Conference series finale at Baylor Ballpark.

The win helps Tech (16-5, 1-2 in Big 12) avoid the sweep after the Bears (10-9, 2-1) had taken the first two games by a combined score of 3-2. The Red Raiders entered Sunday hitting just .175 in the series, and had lost the first two games of the series despite excellent pitching throughout the weekend.

The same held true on Sunday as left-hander Cameron Smith tossed five effective innings in his first start of the season, and right-hander Corey Taylor followed with four scoreless frames to earn the win (3-0).

Smith, who was 4-0 going into the game, allowed a run on three hits with a walk and three strikeouts. Two of Baylor’s three hits came in the first inning.

For the series, the Red Raiders allowed just four total runs in 25 innings for a 1.44 ERA. But for Tech’s first 25 offensive innings, it looked as though it would go for naught.

Then the eighth inning happened.

Tech’s lucky break was actually set up in the bottom of the seventh when Baylor talented freshman outfielder Darryn Sheppard fouled a ball off his fingers as he squared to bunt. He finished the at-bat, striking out, but was replaced in the top of the eighth by fellow freshman Lane Kelly, who was making his first career appearance in a Baylor uniform.

The inning started innocently enough against Baylor reliever Drew Tolson (0-4) with a groundout by Bryant Burleson, a single to left by Eric Gutierrez and a fielder’s choice by Ryan Long, erasing pinch-runner Devon Conley.

Jake Barrios drew a walk to put the tying run in scoring position — Tech was 1 for 20 with runners in scoring position going into the inning. Baylor went to its fourth pitcher of the inning in Sean Spicer to face Kirsch, and the move looked to have worked as Kirsch popped up to left field.

Kelly came in and had an easy play on the ball, but it popped out of his glove. With a full count to Kirsch and two outs, both runners were off with the pitch, and that allowed both Long and Barrios to score to put Tech up 2-1.

Anthony Lyons drew a walk and Spicer hit Zach Davis to load the bases. Baylor went back to the pen for right-hander Nick Lewis, but Redman greeted him by lacing a bases-clearing double over Kelly’s head and to the wall in left to make it a 5-1 lead.

After a walk to Stephen Smith, Burleson and Conley ripped RBI singles to make it 7-1, Burleson getting caught in a rundown between third and home to end the inning.

All seven runs were unearned thanks to Kelly’s error.

Taylor closed out the win by retiring six of the final seven batters he faced. In his four innings of work he sat down 12 of 13 batters with four strikeouts and one walk.

As was the case the first two games, the Bears jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first on a Duncan Wendel two-out RBI single. Smith came back to retire seven straight and allowed just one baserunner to reach second over his final four frames.

The Red Raiders had early chances but failed to capitalize. Tech put two on with two outs in each of the first two innings and had runners at first and second with one out in the sixth thanks to a pair of walks. But Baylor starter Austin Stone induced a strikeout from Burleson and a fly to right by Gutierrez.

Stone left after 51/3 innings, scattering two hits with three walks and four strikeouts. But the bullpen, or more specifically the Bears defense, could not hold the lead.

Tech will be back in action on Tuesday, starting a two-game midweek series against Stephen F. Austin at 6:30 p.m. at Rip Griffin Park. The second game is set for 2 p.m. Wednesday before the Red Raiders return to the road for a Big 12 series at TCU beginning Friday in Fort Worth.

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First, does Big 12 baseball use the "paid attendance" metric instead of the "actual" attendance? Just wondering, because it didn't look like there were 2,400 people there. For years basketball has used "paid attendance" instead of actual attendance, and that often gives a completely incorrect picture of what took place.

Second, a picky point--I think standard baseball terminology is that Taylor "set down," instead of "sat down," 12 of 13 hitters he faced. This may just be a typo.